CORNELL (US) — A new method of generating terahertz signals on an inexpensive silicon chip could have applications in medical imaging and wireless data transfer.

A new way to generate terahertz signals on a low-cost silicon chip could be used to identify skin cancers too small to see with the naked eye, detect explosives, and make a sort of super-Bluetooth that could transfer an entire HD movie in a matter of seconds. (Credit: iStockphoto

If you’re never content with Wi-Fi speeds, rest assured that scientists are trying to help. In fact, a team of Japanese researchers has just broken the record for wireless data transmission in the terahertz range—with a data rate 20 times higher than most current Wi-Fi connections.

The research focuses on what scientists call the “T-ray” band: the part of the electromagnetic spectrum between 300 GHz and 3 THz. Lying between microwave and far-infrared, it’s currently an unregulated part of the spectrum, which could be fair game for use in Wi-Fi networks in the future.